All incoming students at the Defense Language Institute now participate in a 3-hour workshop to prepare students better, psychologically, for the experience of learning a foreign language in an intensive program. The workshop includes an attitude survey constructed by researchers, discussion of a questionnaire on the myths and realities of foreign…

Based on a native English-speaking teacher's perception that Chinese university students of English as a Second Language have greater skill in vocabulary than in the communication of ideas, a survey of students in one class investigated attitudes about the role of nonverbal communication in the communication process. Responses indicate a lack of…

The National Education Goal that calls for increased ability to communicate with other nations and understand other cultures is one of six goals established at the 1989 Education Summit between President Bush and the 50 state governors. In response to this goal, the Joint National Committee for Languages surveyed the National Council of State…

The National Core French Study had the objectives of defining and developing four syllabuses and assessing their applicability in Core French classes in Canadian elementary and secondary schools. The four syllabuses, proposed as part of a multidimensional curriculum, include language, communicative/experiential, culture, and general language…

This monograph offers a process model developed by the Fremont Union High School District (California) for the implementation of Vocational English as a Second Language (VESL) at industry sites for minority employees who have limited English proficiency and are unable to continue classes in a traditional manner. The following areas are covered:…

A tenth anniversary issue of the biannual journal of the Language Institute of Japan contains articles on teaching the four language skills, reading, and writing, speaking, listening, as well as cultural training. The articles include: "Rod City: Context and Focus for Student-Generated Language" (Robert Ruud); "Prediction as a…

A study of the effectiveness of a language proficiency testing method using partial dictation is reported. The study used 60 undergraduate students at a Mexican university studying English as a second language under a traditional four-skills approach. The partial dictation exam was a combination of dictation and cloze procedure. The entire text is…

This Invitation to Submit Materials provides an overview of the total instructional materials adoption-distribution process and specific instructions relating to initial submissions for materials to be used in California schools--kindergarten through grades 1 to 8--in the areas of art, music, bilingual and bicultural education, English as a Second…

Intended for use by content area teachers who wish to design lesson plans that incorporate reading and study skills strategies, this guide contains ideas for lessons and example lessons for a variety of subject areas. The lesson ideas and plans, developed by participants in a schoolwide staff development program, cover the disciplines of language…

This paper is another installment in the ongoing project on early language learning in a Japanese FLES program, conducted by ELLRT (Early Language Learning Research Team): Richard Donato and G. Richard Tucker with graduate students from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh. The Japanese instructor in this FLES program, Yoko…

When designing a language program, it is often difficult to create a workable balance between a desired ideal and the realities imposed by limited resources. Ultimately, the task is to make the best use of the available materials within the allotted time frame by drawing on the creativity and expertise of the staff. The following is a brief…

A survey of 211 adult Chinese immigrants in a community school in Los Angeles, California reports on the adults' need and desire for survival English instruction. The study investigated: the situations and contexts for which English instruction was needed; individuals' desire to increase the range of transactions in which they can function in…

Two issues relevant to the effectiveness of media used in second language literacy instruction were addressed in this study: learner-selected versus teacher-assigned media, and media that appeal to learners' preferred perceptual modes compared with media that do not match preferred modes. A group of 47 preliterate Hmong refugees between the ages…

A worldwide international computer network, called the Intercultural Learning Network, has been developed to provide students from different cultures with opportunities to work cooperatively. Prototype activities have been developed and tested which facilitate and contextualize interactions among secondary and college students. Joint projects in…

This bulletin reports the findings from a 1987 nationwide school survey of arts and humanities instruction conducted by Westat, Inc. for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities. (The data are representative of approximately 15,250 operating school districts in the United States, 75% of which have…